


Pardon the Interruption

by WestleyWatson



Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Alien Abduction, Imprisonment, M/M, Mates, Telepathic Bond, Vulcan Mind Melds
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-03
Updated: 2020-06-30
Packaged: 2021-01-20 21:17:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 10,906
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21288317
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WestleyWatson/pseuds/WestleyWatson
Summary: When Lieutenant Adler wakes up in a cell adjacent to her Captain, it is the start of of much more than a fight for freedom.
Relationships: James T. Kirk & Original Female Character(s), James T. Kirk & Spock, James T. Kirk/Spock, James T. Kirk/Spock/Original Female Character, Spock & Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 54





	1. Chapter 1

With my eyes shut tight, I tried to make sense of the echoing alarms that seemed to still ring in my ears. I remembered trying to maneuver the shuttle into something resembling a landing position as my commanding officers did their best to send distress signals and secure the bay for impact. I did a mental inventory of my body. I was sore and my head was throbbing, but I was alive. Eventually I talked myself into opening my eyes. I found that I was in a room with three solid walls and one glass one. On the other side of the glass was my Captain. He was in a room that mirrored my own. He looked haggard and rumpled and had some cuts and bruises, but he was awake and watching me. 

Was he in a cell? Were we captives? The planet we crashed on had not shown any signs of inhabitants. Could we be on a ship? Whose ship? Why? How long had I been out?

“Captain?” I said, sitting up. He approached the glass and I could see his mouth forming the word "Adler.” I was a little surprised he knew my name, but I couldn’t hear him. In fact, the silence in the room was deafening. Now that the ringing had subsided, the lack of noise pressed on my ears. We each tried shouting and pounding on the divide, but nothing made the slightest encroachment on the silence. I didn’t think I had ever been this close to the Captain, despite the wall between us. Even in our ill-fated shuttle, I had only glimpsed a flash of his startling blue eyes as he had marched back to the bay to oversee the transport of the sensitive equipment we were meant to deliver to the Starfleet envoy.

On the wall opposite our shared wall a small four inch by four inch panel popped open in Kirk’s cell. He backed up, suspicious. But then he ran to it and appeared to be talking urgently to whoever was on the other side. At one point he gestured to me, seeming to convey my presence to the other person. He looked back at me in panic and reached his arm through the opening to try to grab or touch something. I could do nothing but watch silently. When he pulled his arm back, the opening slammed shut abruptly. He slammed his fist against the wall and clawed at the small section that had cut him off from the other side. In the end, he slumped down and sank on to the floor, his head in his hands. 

Eventually he remembered I was there. It was like watching an actor get into character. His head snapped up and his eyes met mine. I watched them change from lost and afraid to determined and reassuring in a few blinks. He took in a deep breath and squared his shoulders. Before I knew it, he was on his feet and straightening his uniform. He walked over to the glass with purpose. He had something to tell me.

I stood at attention to show him I was ready. He pointed to the place where the hole had opened up and then gave me the Vulcan salute. I understood. Commander Spock was on the other side of that opening. Then he made a stabbing motion to his shoulder and leg. Spock was hurt. 

“Hey, whoever you are! Our man is hurt! He needs help!” I yelled at the only apparent way in or out of my cell - a panel in the ceiling. “You must stop the bleeding! Mend his wounds,” I said, acting out how someone should care for various injuries. Who knew if our unseen captors knew how to care for humanoids, if they even wanted to do so. But I wasn’t going to take a chance that they let him die just because they didn’t know what to do.

Kirk seemed to understand what I was doing and appeared to join in. After yelling myself hoarse, I sat down on my cot and watched the Captain pace all night. Occasionally he would stop to examine a section of wall or tap on the place that had opened up earlier. 

At one point, I stood up to get his attention. He watched me with tired eyes. I didn’t know how else to ask this question, so I had to try to make him read my lips. 

“The others?” I asked him. He shook his head, not getting it.

I simplified. “Others?” I tried again. I pointed at my insignia and my red shirt and tried to convey the idea of other people standing next to me. “Barnes? C’nai? Appleton?” I said. I saw the moment he understood my question, because his face fell. He held up three fingers on one hand and the Vulcan salute again on his other then he pointed to the area of the wall that had opened up. The other three were in that room with Commander Spock. He held two fingers the pulse point on his neck and shook his head. Then he did the same with the pulse point on his wrist. He held up the Vulcan salute and acted out chest compressions and shook his head. Mr. Spock had tried to save them, but failed. They were dead.

Barnes had been at the Academy with me. She was only 24 years old. C’nai was supposed to return to her homeworld next month during shore leave. She had been so excited to see her family again. It had been ten years. And Appleton had just been assigned to Enterprise. His dream job. Did the crash kill them? Or our captors? Both were terrible possibilities in their own right. 

I settled in for a long night of anxiety, grief and unanswerable questions.


	2. Chapter 2

Some time later (the next morning?), I blinked awake to find Kirk knocking on the glass, despite the lack of sound it was producing. I didn’t remember falling asleep. I had been far too anxious to just doze off. I sat up abruptly and the Captain looked pointedly at the corner of my cell. I followed his gaze to find a generous plate of food waiting for me. How did that get there?

I looked back to Kirk for an answer. He stepped aside to show me the plate in his own corner and he shrugged. I pointed at the panel in the ceiling to imply my question, “Did they lower it in?” He shrugged again. I cocked my head to the side. C’mon, Captain. You didn’t see how it got there? He pantomimed his pacing from the night before then waved his hands in front of his face, in apparent imitation of smoke or gas. He fell down mid-stride, mimicked snoring and waking up to find a plate of food.

They had rendered us unconscious and delivered the food while we were asleep. I went over to the plate to see what our anonymous hosts thought I might want to eat. It was stacked high with familiar fruits and vegetables - apple slices, carrot sticks, berries and leafy greens. Where were we? Who were these guys?

At that moment the small panel on Kirk’s wall slid open. His head whipped around and he ran to the opening. I tried to gauge the tone of the meeting from his body language, but I couldn’t tell much. After a few moments, Kirk moved to the side and I saw Commander Spock’s face framed in the small opening. We made eye contact and I saw his eyebrow shoot upward. Kirk moved back between us to continue his conversation with his second in command.

So, the good news was that Mr. Spock was still alive. His eyes were ringed with dark green and his skin looked rather yellowish, but he was alive. I didn’t have much direct experience with our Science Officer. Actually, the only time I had spoken to him was when I had to escort him on an away mission and suspected that we were walking into a trap. I had taken matters into my own hands and rerouted our party’s path to the rendezvous point. 

When we discovered that the other team was ambushed along our original trail, Mr. Spock pulled me aside. 

“Ensign Adler, explain why we did not follow the same path as the other Enterprise team,” he said to me.

“We were instructed to do so, Commander,” I explained. “However, I grew suspicious of the instructions we were given and opted to move us to an alternate route.”

“You disobeyed orders?” he asked. 

“Yes, sir,” I stated, matter-of-factly.

”Why did you grow suspicious? And why did you not alert the other team?” he pushed.

“I don’t know, Commander,” I admitted. “It was just a gut feeling. And I did alert them. They did not deem my gut...trustworthy.”

He had not commented any further. He did that thing with his eyebrow and then turned and walked away. I figured I was in for a disciplinary hearing. However, I found out later that my review for Lieutenant had been fast tracked a week later.

The panel between Kirk and Spock must have snapped back into place without warning because the Captain jumped back abruptly. He again attacked the spot in the wall, attempting to reopen the window. Eventually, he gave up with a sigh. He retrieved his plate and brought it to the floor in front of our shared wall. He sat down behind it, and looked at me as if he was waiting for me to join him at a table in the mess hall. 

When I brought my plate and sat down to join him, I nodded at him and said, “Captain.” He shook his head, “no.” 

“Not Captain,” he slowly mouthed and gestured to our surroundings, as if to say the situation didn’t warrant the title. “Jim,” he said, gesturing to his chest.

Involuntarily, I cringed. Horrified at my reaction, I quickly waived my hands, as if trying to cleanse the air of my faux paux. And he laughed. I froze, entranced. I had never seen the Captain laugh before. From across a room I’d seen him smile politely or smirk in amusement, but that was my Captain. This was Jim Kirk. The laugh lines that suddenly creased his face as his eyes closed to savor the moment, were utterly charming. 

Barnes once told me that she had seen the Captain laughing as he came off of a turbolift with Commander Spock. But she had also said that the Commander had a smile on his face, so I figured she was full of shit. No way the Vulcan had been smiling.

When he looked back up at me, I said, “Captain” emphatically while pointing at him. He raised his hands in surrender. He gestured to me and said, “Adler” to confirm he had it right. I nodded. He pointed at me and gave me a thumbs up with a shrug. He was asking if I was okay. I nodded again. I touched my head and scowled to show him I had a headache, but then shrugged to indicate it wasn’t terribly concerning. 

I pointed at the wall behind him, gave the Vulcan salute and then did the same thumbs up-shrug he had done. He nodded and pantomimed being bandaged. He pointed up to the ceiling panels, indicating that our captors had administered the care.

I quickly made the Vulcan salute, pointed at my eye and then the ceiling to ask, “Did Spock see them?” Kirk understood right away and shook his head. He made the same gesture for the sleeping gas he made previously. They had knocked Spock out to help him.

We both sighed and looked at our food. I couldn’t decide if it was safe to try. It seemed that the Captain was having the same internal debate. To avoid having to make a decision, I pointed at him and did the thumbs up-shrug thing.

He hesitated for just a moment and then nodded. I put my hand on my hip and furrowed my brow at him. “Liar,” I said. He laughed again. I wondered what he sounded like when he laughed. His shoulders shook slightly, so it didn’t seem like it would be a big noise. But I bet it was the kind of sound that seeped into your brain and stayed there. It crossed my mind that he likely had no idea what my voice sounded like. 

I pointed at him again and asked, “you okay?” He took a moment to look me over and come to some kind of conclusion. He sighed and lifted his shirt to reveal his side. From his waist to his armpit, his entire side was black and blue. He had to have broken ribs. How was this guy laughing at all? Or pounding on walls or shouting at the ceiling?

I stood up and inhaled deeply to start berating our captors about my Captain’s physical health. But Kirk waved me down before I got a word out. He pointed to the food and indicated I should rejoin him. I scowled at him. He pointed to the insignia on his chest and then to the floor. I could tell he said, “That’s an order, Lieutenant.” But he was smiling as he pulled rank.

I acquiesced. I sat down and picked up a carrot. If our captors were tending to Mr. Spock, why would they bother poisoning us, right?

Kirk held up a hand to stop me from taking a bite. He picked up one of his own carrots and motioned for me to wait until he had tried it. I rolled my eyes at him and crunched into the carrot. He smiled and picked up an apple slice instead. I guess if he didn’t have to be chivalrous, he wasn’t going to go for the veggies first.


	3. Chapter 3

We fell into a strange routine over the coming days. Roughly every 12 hours we were subjected to the gas that knocked us out. When we woke, a full plate was in the corner of our cells and Kirk would get approximately ninety seconds of time with Spock when that small panel opened. Our diet consisted mainly of fruits and vegetables with the occasional helping of beans, nuts or bread.

Kirk and I developed a fairly extensive vocabulary with non-verbal communication. We quickly realized that literal representations were limiting. So, when we had an abstract word to convey we would spell it out with carrot sticks or beans and invent a hand signal or motion to represent it. We eventually realized we just needed an alphabet of hand signals and we could eliminate playing with our food. I think we had gone about that backwards, but it helped pass the time. 

Honestly, it seemed as though the Captain was often distracted by something. I would catch him staring off at nothing, but not in the way a man does when he is bored or lost in his own thoughts. His face was a riot of microexpressions that came and went in an instant. Almost as if he were having a vigorous debate and trying to remain stone-faced to reveal nothing to his adversary. I thought I’d ask Barnes about it when this was all done since she was often on the bridge with him. Then I remembered Barnes was gone. 

Through our “conversations” I eventually learned that the captors had removed the bodies of our fallen team members from Spock’s room after that first day. His injuries healed without further complication and his room was four solid walls, save the small window to Kirk’s. He also had a panel in the ceiling with no other visible entrance or exit to the room. 

We all had a small private area of our cells with facilities. I found this almost comical. I mean, the Captain was privy to every other moment of my day and night and I was certain our captors weren’t ever giving me privacy. The small accommodation was curious. Did they know anything about us to begin with? Did they realize we would want or appreciate the illusion of privacy? Did they assume based on their own habits or desires? The diet they provided us was decidedly human, though vegetarian, which alluded to a knowledge of the Vulcans as well. However, based on the delay in treating Mr. Spock and the death of our other teammates, they really did seem to need guidance in our basic care. 

Kirk and I (and, I assumed, Spock) began a systematic evaluation of every inch of our cells. Well, every inch that we could reach with our feet flat on the floor. Our captors didn’t seem to mind our curiosity unless we climbed up on something. The moment Kirk stood on his cot to try to reach higher, the gas was released in his cell and he flopped down on the bed, unconscious. So, we played by their rules...for the time being.

It didn’t take me long to realize that the total silence of my cell was the first thing that threatened my sanity. So, I took to talking, singing and humming to myself. Kirk quickly learned I wasn’t trying to talk to him unless we were standing at the glass wall. I noticed that Kirk started doing the same after a few days. Although I was insanely jealous that he was able to talk to Spock, I guess ninety seconds every twelve hours wasn’t really enough to displace the quiet.

My repertoire consisted mainly of every upbeat, hopeful, optimistic song or poem or story I could dredge up from my memory. The total lack of any information regarding our situation was like a constant irritant under my skin - an itch I couldn’t scratch. Questions flooded in if I let my mind wander for even a moment. Who were they? What did they want? Were they demanding a ransom? Or were we a permanent exhibit? Did Enterprise know we were alive? 

Occasionally I would be so adept at distracting myself that I would find myself bopping around to the song I was singing. The first time it happened, I only noticed because Kirk had stopped tapping on his walls and was leaning against one with his arms and feet crossed. He was watching me and smirking. No secrets among those who live in glass houses.

Rather than submitting to the hot embarrassment that quickly raced up my face, I decided to embrace the moment. I exaggerated my singing and held my hands out to Kirk, inviting him to dance. He laughed softly and shook his head no. Undeterred, I broke into full dance mode. The pure stress release of a full-on dance break was one hundred percent worth making a fool of myself in front of the Pride of Starfleet. When I finished, he applauded, which made us both laugh. Plus, I know I saw his hips sway from time to time after that. 

The Captain and I always ate our meals together in front of the glass. It was a comforting habit to make us feel a tiny bit normal. It was at one of these meals that Kirk asked me my first name. He looked terribly embarrassed to do so, but I was actually rather flattered that he did. I spelled out “A - N - N - A.”

I watched his mouth form the word. He said it several times and then formed his right hand into a fist and placed it on his left shoulder. Then he dragged it down to the bend of his elbow and back up. He said “Anna” again to make sure I understood this was the new sign for my name.

I spelled out “K - I - R - K” and then ran my hands through my hair and finished by using my right hand to tilt my chin so my head looked up and to the right as if I was posing for the world’s cheesiest professional photo. Kirk laughed. 

“What is that supposed to mean?” he signed to me.

“Pretty boy hot shot Captain,” I replied.

“Not now,” he signed back. He rubbed the scruff on his face and gestured to his cell.

“Soon,” I reassured him.

He raised his eyebrow at me and it was such a Spock move, I burst out laughing. He looked confused until I gave him the Vulcan salute and pointed at my own eyebrow to let him in on the joke. I could see his laugh was boisterous, which did more for my general morale than anything else.


	4. Chapter 4

The fourth or fifth day of our captivity the Captain started slipping a strange phrase into our “conversations” that I didn’t fully understand. He would ask how I was feeling and, when I assured him I was fine, he would ask if my mental balance was in alignment. I made him spell everything out the first time because I thought I was missing something. But he spelled it out and gave me a look that seemed to say, “play along.”

Around day seven I finally caught on that he wanted me to say my “mental balance” was off when he asked me, “are you sure?” for the third time. When I signed back that I was feeling a little off, he nodded sagely and said he thought so. He told me not to hide my struggle and let him know if I began to feel unable to concentrate or disoriented.

The next day I stumbled sideways into a wall a few times and the twinkle in Kirk’s eyes told me that his plan was coming together, even if I had no idea what the plan entailed. As I invented and exhibited more symptoms of this fake illness, I could see him talking to the ceiling more often. He repeatedly pointed at me and then at Spock beyond his other wall. He also started pantomiming a Vulcan mind meld. Well now...that was interesting. He was gambling on exactly what our captors did and did not know about us. 

By day fourteen, I didn’t join the Captain at the wall for our meal. I stayed on my cot and had a rather dramatic episode of hyperventilating and full body shakes. My performance was matched by Kirk’s own. He threw a spectacular fit. I could see him running around his cell getting red in the face for all his screaming. In his supposed panic, he threw his plate like a flying disc at the ceiling panel. When that didn’t get a reaction, he upended his cot and started climbing up it like a ladder. The gas came into our cells thick and fast then.

When I awoke, I was sitting on the floor propped against the wall. I blinked again and again, trying to clear my head. They must have really dosed us this time because I couldn’t make sense of what I was seeing. It was like being inside a mirror. Things were backwards.

Then I heard the first sound made by anything other than myself in two weeks. It was the sound of metal dragging against metal. And then I heard a voice.

“Remain motionless, Lieutenant,” Commander Spock said.

I did exactly as I was told and watched as Mr. Spock’s arm came through the opening in the wall above my head and he positioned his fingers on the psi points on my face. I was in Kirk’s cell! My eyes found Kirk on the other side of the glass, looking back at me from my former cot.

The next voice came, not to my ears, but in my mind. 

“Please do not react outwardly, Lieutenant,” his voice echoed through my head. “In order to prevent any damage or trauma, I will be taking this process very slowly. Consequently, it may take you some time to navigate the telepathic link enough to convey sentences to me as I am doing to you. We will attempt to continue these melds daily. You should show gradual outward improvement of your symptoms to reinforce the illusion that this process is vital to your health.”

He paused then and I tried to convey my understanding and agreement. I could feel his consciousness fluttering on the edge of my own. It was like having someone hover in a doorway. This was just a baby step toward the link that I knew was possible with Vulcans and I was thankful he was taking it easy on me. It was a very disquieting sensation.

“I am sensing your gratitude,” he said. “It will take a few sessions to establish a link that we can access by choice without physical contact. I would suggest you use the intervening time to meditate and organize your mind. I have concluded that humans are able to compartmentalize and allow access to specific areas of their consciousness.”

I tried to nod mentally. 

“I should warn you, Lieutenant,” said Spock, “that we are attempting a highly unusual meld with you.” He paused then and I could tell he was searching for a...tactful way to say something? “My mind is already bonded with my mate. However, we agreed that it was worth the risk of attempting to bring you into the mental bond as well. It gives us the highest probability of a successful escape from our current situation.”

His mate? Spock had a mate? No one had ever indicated that the second in command of Starfleet’s flagship had a mate. Surely that would be news!

“Your confusion is understandable, Lieutenant,” he continued. “The Captain and I have often debated the merits of making our relationship known to others, but we have yet to settle the issue.”

“We’re putting a hell of a lot of trust in you, Anna,” Kirk’s voice suddenly broke across my mind.

A wave of gratitude, awe, disappointment, guilt, hope, and giddiness swept over me. It was a bit like my mind had a short circuit. They had been talking with each other the entire time. They came up with this plan together. They had an ace up their sleeves in every situation. They were in love. They had made a deep and abiding commitment to one another. This was way too much information. Spock (and/or Kirk?!) seemed to pick up on my mental overload and he gently removed his hand from my face, breaking the link. 

I heard the small metal door slide shut and I looked across the room at Kirk. He smiled weakly, hopefully. I slowly got to my feet. My legs were legitimately shaky. But, I made it to the cot and sat on the edge. I could smell something foreign. I realized that it was the Captain’s scent on his bed sheets.

Kirk waved to get my attention and signed, “Are you okay?”

I took several deep breaths before answering. My mind was racing with a million questions. Plus I needed a complete re-calibration of my own perception of my budding relationship with the Captain. Logically I knew that he was my Captain and it was his job to keep me calm and work toward a solution. But I had begun to feel that we were developing a real friendship as well. Maybe the friendship was all in my head. Maybe I didn’t know the Captain any better than I had two weeks ago. Maybe, maybe, maybe. 

“I will be now,” I signed back. Then I ran my hands through my hair and posed with my hand on my chin - “Kirk.”

He laughed with relief. And that relief flooded through me as well. Regardless of what our relationship was or wasn’t, he and the Commander and myself were going to get out of here. Together.

I laid down on the bed that smelled of my Captain and started to wrap my head around the fact that he and Mr. Spock were not only mated, but they were both about to be rolling around in my thoughts. I had a lot of mental housekeeping to do.


	5. Chapter 5

By the fifth day, I was finally “talking” across the bond with Spock and Kirk. Since none of us seemed overly anxious to let one another into every corner of our minds, teaching me the skill was a delicate dance. Being human and knowing the way he had learned with Spock, Kirk was very helpful in explaining how to do it. He pointed out that the majority of human “thought” was really an abstract mish-mosh of emotion, instinct, and visual- and language-based thought. He said that the lack of structure was actually helpful when it came to keeping things to yourself across a bond. He and Spock weren’t going to delve into my subconscious or abstract thoughts. So, if I wanted to say something, I had to make a distinct and conscious effort to say the words in my mind. I could essentially wall off access to anything other than these purposeful efforts to speak. 

But understanding the principle of the thing didn’t mean I got the hang of it immediately. The first time I tried to communicate, I managed to get my sentences across to them, but some other bits and pieces also slipped across the bond. 

“Using the link, state your name and rank,” Spock had instructed.

“Lieutenant Anna Adler,” I mentally shoved each word forward in my mind. “USS Enterprise, NCC-1701.”

“Good. It’s good to hear you, Adler,” Kirk said, putting an attentive emphasis on my name in a way that made my heart race. “But you don’t have to shout.”

“And you don’t have to make my name sound like sex,” I thought. “But here we are.”

“Lieutenant?” Spock’s voice rang through my mind. “How does one make a name sound like sex?” 

“Shit! I mean, I’m sorry. Sorry, Captain. Commander. Sorry, I’m so sorry,” my mind raced with embarrassed panic. 

That was the first time I heard Kirk laugh. It was a gentle chuckle that echoed through the link. The sound also triggered a reaction in Spock that I picked up on immediately. It wasn’t a thought per se, but it was almost as if he perked up - like he was trying extra hard to absorb and experience what was happening over the bond at that moment. It was...adorable.

It also helped me check my own frame of mind. Theirs wasn’t a casual relationship and I was going to need to remember that if I was going to keep my own inclinations toward Kirk in check. He’s taken, Anna. Really and truly taken. Move along.

“Calm down, Adler,” Kirk coached. “You just have to be mindful of what thoughts you allow to form where. We aren’t going to court martial you for speaking out of turn over a mental link.”

“Right. Yes, okay,” I thought carefully. “Now, plans? How are we getting out of here?”

I heard Kirk’s laugh again. “Not one to waste time, are you, Adler?”

“I believe trying to formulate a plan before we have fully established a workable link would be unwise,” Spock advised.

“How advanced do I have to be to follow orders?” I asked, trying to sound respectful.

“If we were only interested in conveying orders, we would not have bothered to undertake the potentially dangerous and certainly invasive steps to establish this connection,” Spock pointed out.

“Geez. Ominous much, Commander Cryptic?” I thought without thinking. “Shit! Sorry! I mean...what do you mean by that, Mr. Spock?”

“Do you often have these sarcastic reactions when your superiors speak to you, Lieutenant?” Spock asked with genuine interest. 

The Captain’s good-natured laugh echoed through my mind again. “Many of us do, Spock,” he said. “It’s a very human reaction.” 

“Fascinating,” Spock answered. “I have not heard these comments from you.”

“You aren’t usually listening in when I’m speaking with admirals,” Kirk reasoned. 

“Did you have such thoughts at the Academy?” Spock inquired.

“You mean did I have some choice words cross my mind when we met,” Kirk interpreted. “Oh, hell yes,” he chuckled. It was then that I realized that the conversation had shifted and I shouldn’t have been hearing it. It had happened so quickly. One second they were my Captain and Commander teaching me something to help get us out of a critical situation and the next second it was as if I was intercepting a private frequency.

“I think I need a break,” I interjected.  
“Ah yes, of course, Lieutenant,” Spock agreed. “We will continue tomorrow.”

“Nice talking to you, Adler,” Kirk added.

“And you, Captain. Commander,” I said. “Thank you.”

Spock released my psi points and I opened my eyes to find the Captain smiling. He looked...proud of me. 

Taken. He’s taken, Anna.

It was another long night of trying to sort my thoughts and feelings out.

As our “lessons” continued, I realized that speaking across the link was not the only obstacle to overcome. On the seventh or eighth day I accidentally mentioned Barnes and was so overcome with grief for my lost friend that I was unable to get my mind back in enough order to communicate anything for the rest of the session. 

A few sessions later Spock called the Captain “Jim” while they were discussing the best way to teach me to convey more nuance with my words and it scrambled my brain. It was so unexpectedly intimate and casual. My growing curiosity about their relationship raced over my thoughts and I was terrified that it would slip through the bond, so I shut off my thoughts completely.

I could feel both the Commander and Captain pushing against the link. Their confusion was palpable. But my mind was conjuring little domestic scenes of the two of them in their quarters getting ready for the day, adorable shared looks across the bridge, and stolen moments in the turbolift when Kirk would purposefully fluster Spock by pressing up against him and -- Ah! Stop it, brain!

I stood up abruptly, breaking the contact and severing the link completely. Kirk hopped up from his cot and rushed to the glass wall. 

“What’s wrong?” he signed. At the same time I heard Spock’s actual voice, “Lieutenant? Are you well?”

I held up a hand to each of them. “My apologies, Commander. Our sessions are helping me a great deal. I just need some time to adjust to the re-balancing. Sometimes it is overwhelming. A little dizzying.”

“Understood, Lieutenant,” Spock said. “Might I suggest a moment of meditation and then we will continue?”

I looked back to the small window which framed Spock’s curious stare. It was then that I noticed something I had never seen in the Commander’s face before - concern. But it was more than a practical or logical concern for a member of his team. It was...emotional. He cared and he was a little scared for me. 

Upon closer examination, his expression didn’t actually seem to be any different than it ever had been in the past. It was just that I could sense something behind the expression. Despite the fact that our physical bond was broken, I could still feel him. 

Standing alone in the center of my cell I squeezed my eyes tight and tried to reach out with my mind to probe the feeling. 

“It’s happening, Jim,” I heard Spock say clearly in my head. I was so shocked that his use of the Captain’s first name didn’t even register this time.


	6. Chapter 6

“Focus all of your attention on the breath moving in and out of your lungs. If your mind wanders, do not dwell on the failure. Simply bring your thoughts back to your breath,” Spock’s calm voice slipped over my consciousness as he led the Captain and I through lessons meant to increase the mental connection to our physical bodies.

Breath in. Breath out. Breath in. Breath -- the bridge of the Enterprise. Red alert! Shields at fifty percent. The feel of the Captain’s chair hitting the back of my legs. My arm goes back, hand searching for purchase before the inevitable jolt of the room that may send me flying in a decidedly undignified manner.

“Captain!” Spock’s voice cut across the scene with a sharp snap. 

I opened my eyes to see Kirk jolt awake on the other side of the glass. That was the third time he had fallen asleep. The first two times treated us to nonsensical psychedelic dream sequences filled with flashes of Starfleet Academy, Iowa, and past missions. But this one was more like a cohesive memory complete with physical sensations. It was very disconcerting. 

“Captain, the purpose of this exercise…” I got up from the floor and wandered over to my tray of raw veggies. I took a moment to appreciate the loud crunch that echoed around my head as I chewed since I could use it to tune out the lecture I had already heard twice. 

The past twenty-four hours had been - to use a phrase I was hearing a lot lately - fascinating. Our initial excitement about the success of the perma-link was quickly dampened by the discovery that the Captain and Commander had a little trouble controlling it. 

In other words, they couldn’t seem to turn it off. There was an extensive conversation between them that clued me in to the fact that they had been very intentional in the way they “spoke” to each other previously. From what I could gather, Spock would break through just enough to let Kirk know he was ready to open the link and Kirk would essentially give a thumbs up or thumbs down, which Spock would unfailingly respect. Well, except for the time that Kirk had been kept planet-bound by the delegation from Rageff 7 and sensors couldn’t detect him and he had refused Spock’s inquiry and Spock had made the decision that his duty as First Officer was more urgent than his restraint as a respectful bond mate. He had broken in to find Kirk in the middle of formulating a rather scandalous and complicated plan that involved faking his way through the seduction of a female guard.

That whole story spilled into my consciousness in a bizarre double-barrelled sort of way as both men remembered the experience from their own point of view when they started to contemplate the potential pitfalls of not being able to shut one another out. 

It wasn’t as if we were all careening freely around each others inner-most thoughts and feelings - we could still maintain the walls we put up. But we couldn’t totally silence the link. It was like having quarters next to one another and the doors to our rooms wouldn’t close. We didn’t have to look into the other person’s space, but we could still kind of see and hear what was happening over there. 

“Captain, we must accelerate our plan,” Spock had declared once he determined that he could not fix the problem easily.

“You know I thought it was too conservative anyway, Spock,” Kirk replied. “Go for it.”

“Additional obstacles will arise from a more aggressive timeline,” Spock cautioned. “There will be a great deal of mental strain.”

“I’m all for mental strain if it means I can go home sooner,” I offered. 

“See,” Kirk said, “Adler’s in.” 

“Very well,” Spock agreed. “We will begin immediately. Both of you should find an activity that will not draw the attention or suspicion of our captors but will allow you to concentrate on guided exercises that you must complete for our plan to be successful.”

“What exactly is our plan?” I asked as I pulled my blanket from my cot and laid it out on the floor. I laid on my back and bent my legs at the knee while keeping my feet on the floor, adjusting until I found that spot where I didn’t have to engage any muscles to keep them in position and felt my lower back relax into the floor. Then I stretched my arms straight out and allowed my shoulders to sink down. I had assumed this position for at least an hour every day since our arrival, so I didn’t think it would draw the attention of our captors.

“We are going to train ourselves to resist the effects of the gas they are releasing into our cells,” Spock said. I rolled my head to the side to look at Kirk. The Vulcan had to be kidding. Captain was sitting in the corner of his room. He looked over at me, smirked at my obvious disbelief, and then tipped his head back to stare at the hatch in the ceiling. He had a habit of watching that little square for hours on end, so it was a natural cover for our training.

It turned out that the first part of the plan was using our collective concentration and cooperation to see if we could stay awake under non-gas-induced circumstances. We had been interrupted twice now by brief gas-outs, but Spock reported that we had only been asleep for seventeen point six minutes the first time and eighteen point three minutes the second time. Though he did note that the Captain took an extra thirty-four seconds each time to be fully alert. Never underestimate a Vulcan’s internal clock. 

We had been doing pretty well until Kirk said he was going to “concentrate” while laying on his cot with his eyes closed. Spock had initially agreed that this was a great idea as our plan was going to involve looking as though we had been knocked out by the gas and then pouncing on our captors when they entered our cells or springing up to block the closure of the ceiling hatch. But Kirk kept dozing off.

“Commander?” I sent over our link, interrupting the argument he and Kirk were having over how best to keep someone awake - control achieved through meditation and discipline (Spock’s position) or loud/entertaining/jarring/engaging activity (Kirk’s position).

“Yes, Lieutenant?” Spock said, turning his attention to me, though I could feel a lingering desire to keep talking to Kirk alone.

“I think what it comes down to is that you are approaching this exercise as a teacher would to a class. It is my understanding that Captain Kirk has never been particularly successful at conforming to the traditional teacher/student paradigm. Perhaps you should incorporate your knowledge of his...unique learning style...into your plan,” I said. I could feel Kirk’s amusement.

“I appreciate that insight, Lieutenant,” Spock replied. “However, the Captain is not the only ‘student’ in this class. Would it not be more beneficial to find a method that we all can adhere to together?”

“It would. But I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that whatever we do to keep the Captain awake would be more than enough to keep you and I awake.”

“Are you calling me the lowest common denominator, Adler?” Kirk asked.

“Hush. I’m having a private conversation with Commander Spock about a difficult student,” I admonished.

Kirk’s laugh echoed through my mind once again. It was quickly chased by a feeling that was almost like a tickle at the base of my brain and simultaneous flutter in my chest. I didn’t have time to form the words “what was that” before I got my answer. 

“Not many people can make him laugh, Adler,” Kirk said with a wave of thankful appreciation directed at me and tender affection towards Spock.


	7. Chapter 7

After a largely successful 48 hours of staying awake (minus brief gas-induced breaks that we readily submitted to), we all agreed that we needed to sleep and build up our strength before we attempted to resist the gas. But as Captain Kirk’s previous nod-offs had already shown us, our lack of an off-switch left us open to the ramblings of one anothers’ unconscious brains. I expressed my concern to the Captain and Commander.

“I am able to sleep at will and you are both at the limits of exhaustion. You will be asleep quickly. Once we have entered our own sleep cycles, I do not believe we will be open to the influence of the meld,” Spock theorized. “Thus far, when we have been rendered unconscious from the gas, we have not been privy to one another’s experiences.”

“So we’re just gonna hope we all fall asleep at the same time?” I asked, doubtful. “I think there’s a difference between drifting into dreamland and being knocked out. I don’t remember dreaming when I’m blacked out.”

“What’s the worst that could happen, Adler?” Kirk asked me through the link. Then, he stopped eating his grapes and signed, “Your sessions have been successful? Are you rebalanced?” The continued charade of communication only through our wordless sign language was exhausting and a little confusing. I hoped that this whole ordeal would be over soon. 

“I only need to rest now,” I signed back as I thought, “My dreams do not need an audience that has the authority to write reports to Starfleet.”

“Take the time to restore your strength,” he signed while Spock chimed in with, “Starfleet records do not require that level of detail, Lieutenant.”

I put down my celery and signed, “good night” to the Captain before I got up and went to my cot.

“Okay, gentlemen,” I thought as I got comfy, “who’s singing the lullaby?”

“I do not require a lullaby,” Spock answered. I saw Krik’s mouth twitch upward with a suppressed laugh as he settled down to sleep.

I closed my eyes and had a moment of nervous worry that made my stomach knot up. However, the relief of knowing I could just drift off to sleep without Spock barking at me to maintain control quickly won out. The creeping darkness of unconsciousness swept over me in one fell swoop.

I ran a hand over the hull of the shuttlecraft. My fingers tingled with the subtle undulations in the surface and I felt the familiar joy. I was going to pilot this little baby on an important mission. So important that both the Captain and Commander Spock were going to be on board!

“Adler!” Appleton boomed. “Stop molesting the shuttle and get your ass moving on pre-flight check,” he said as he bumped my arm goodnaturedly with his elbow. The sensation of another human being coming in contact with anything other than the psi point on my face shocked me into the realization that I was dreaming. Dreaming of that day…

I turned in time to see Barnes walking into the bay. She crossed her eyes and screwed up her mouth to make me smile. She always knew when I was under pressure and did her best to relieve it. Even though I was aware that I was dreaming and that Barnes was gone, I wasn’t overcome with grief or sadness. I felt the same things I felt that day - anticipation, appreciation, and determination.

“Barnes,” I heard myself say. “Would you please remind your face that I outrank it and it should be more professional and respectful in the future.”

“Someone is feeling mighty full of themselves this morning,” she said as she boarded the shuttle with a wink. I puffed up my chest and followed her onboard with a little extra swagger. 

I slid in front of the console and took a deep breath. I felt the slight dip of the floor as C’nai came on board. “Lieutenant,” she said as she walked behind me to her station. “I trust that you are sufficiently prepared for this responsibility.”

“Of course, Lieutenant Commander,” I smiled over my shoulder at her. She inclined her head toward me in the familiar way that she always did when she was trying to be warm and encouraging. 

Barnes sat next to me and made the humming noise in the back of her throat that she would make when she was concentrating. That hum was the soundtrack of my years at the Academy. So, hearing it immediately put me at ease and my hands flew over the console checking on all of the systems. I got into the zone quickly and barely noticed when the equipment was loaded in behind me.

In fact, I didn’t even look up until I caught the glimpse of blue eyes as the Captain walked past me. I went back to work but felt the shuttle rock and the crisp step of Commander Spock as he made his way back to the small bay where he would monitor the equipment for transport. I heard the hiss of the door as it shut behind him.

“Precious cargo on board, Lieutenant,” Barnes said in a tone that let me know she was smirking without having to look at her. Then she leaned in close to me and said, “what do you think they’re doing back there all alone?”

Wait. That wasn’t right. She hadn’t said that. I looked over at her and she raised her eyebrows at me in a suggestive way. “Barnes!” I snapped. I looked around to see if Appleton and C’nai had overheard this exchange, but they weren’t in the shuttle anymore. Neither one was at their stations. When I turned back, Barnes was gone too.

Confused, I stood up and looked around. My colleagues were nowhere to be seen. I walked back to the equipment bay. When the door slid open, I got an eye full.

The Captain and Mr. Spock were wrapped around each other. Kirk’s bare back was facing me and I could see that he had Spock half sitting on the counter in front of him. Spock’s left leg was hooked around Kirk’s as he used his right leg to give him leverage to press into the Captain. I watched as Spock’s hands danced across the tan skin and tight muscles of Kirk’s back, his own head thrown back and eyes closed to concentrate on the sensations. Kirk licked and kissed Spock’s neck with frantic appreciation. A primal moan escaped from one of them as Kirk reached up to guide Spock’s lips down to his own.

I must have gasped because two sets of eyes snapped to me. Embarrassed and confused, I backed up letting the bay door close. What was wrong with my subconscious? I turned the memory of the last time I saw my friends alive into some kind of voyeuristic fantasy about the two men that had easy access to my thoughts? I was going to have see a counselor as soon as we got back to Enterprise.

The door to the equipment bay opened and the Captain and Commander exited. They both looked a little crumpled and hastily put back together which only increased the social horror of the situation.

“Anna,” the Captain greeted me, looking abashed. “We didn’t realize you were actually here. We thought one of us was creating this scenario. A memory, really. Of the last time we weren’t separated by a wall or two or three.”

“Wait, what? What are you saying?” I looked to Spock for explanation. “Commander, are you...you and the Captain...is this...uh…” I trailed off unsure of what exactly was happening. “I mean, I’m dreaming, right? Are you dreaming? Or in my dream? Am I in yours? Or…You said we wouldn’t be connected if we were unconscious!”

“It appears that I hypothesized incorrectly,” Spock said matter-of-factly. “This is a fascinating phenomenon. It appears we are fully experiencing a shared alternate reality that is created by the unconscious minds working together.” 

“Are you kidding me?” I whined. “This is a fucking nightmare,” I added under my breath. 

“Actually, you sorta stopped the fucking before it started,” Kirk laughed. Utterly shocked at the come-back, I laughed in a way that quickly devolved into a rather hysterical giggle.

“Jim,” Spock said, concern evident in his tone.

Kirk stepped forward and placed his hands on my shoulders. It was like an electric shock. I could feel the warmth of his hands through my uniform. I had lost track of the total time we had been imprisoned, but it seemed like forever since a comforting touch had come my way. The kindness and the stress and the awkward feelings and the guilt and grief and everything else broke over me and I started crying.

Kirk pulled me closer and wrapped his arms around me in a protective bear hug. Even though I knew we were all asleep in our respective cells and all of this was happening in our minds, it felt completely real. I could hear the Captain’s heartbeat and feel the muscles of his arms tense and relax as he held me. I could feel my own fingernails digging into my palms as my fists clenched under my chin, my arms pinned to my chest by the Captain’s embrace. I felt the horrible sensation of the ragged breaths tearing at my throat as I gasped for air between the sobs. I could feel my tears soak into the Captain’s shirt so that the dampness spread down to my cheek that was pressed against him. 

Just as I started to think I might be able to get myself under control, I felt another body envelop me. Spock had stepped in and joined the embrace. His normally rigid posture quickly melted into a soft and comforting stance. And more than just the sensation of being surrounded by the support of my fellow captives and superior officers, I could feel their care, concern and affection. They both had genuine feelings of loving friendship toward me. 

My sobs began to quiet and Kirk tipped his head down to rest his cheek on the top of my head, which barely made it to his shoulder. Spock shifted to rest his own forehead against Kirk’s and both men sighed gently. 

“I’m sorry, Captain,” I whispered. “And Commander.”

“Anna,” Kirk said into my hair. “Don’t you think it’s about time you call me Jim?”

A small laugh escaped my lips.

“You may still call me Commander,” Spock said. As laughter shook our little group hug, I snaked one arm around Jim’s waist and one behind me so I could pull Spock in closer.


	8. Chapter 8

It took us a week or two, but we eventually figured out how to co-exist in sleep as we did in wakefulness. Spock pointed out that we were able to successfully start our first shared reality experience by being in separate portions of the shuttle. That showed that we were able to retreat to our own corners, so to speak. If we could do it once we could do it again. We just had to agree to willfully ignore one another. Seemed easy enough. 

Of course, it wasn’t. I lost count of the number of times I accidentally saw a lot more of my superior officers than I should have. They had a bad habit of sneaking off together to get a little alone time together when we were supposed to be in our own little worlds. And I had a bad habit of forgetting to dream-knock on dream-doors when I got tired of being off on my own. Frankly, it was all rather confusing and weird. But we eventually got the hang of it. With some practice, we were even able to move into the non-dreaming cycles of sleep together and actually rest. 

We would start our dreams by coming together in the shared space to catch up, make plans, get some more training in and, to my surprise, have some “physical” contact. That first night I could feel the moment that Kirk gave a meaningful look to Spock over my head. He was letting the Vulcan know that my mental health was bolstered by touch, even if it was only in our minds. Spock understood and agreed. They were so adept at keeping each other informed and making decisions together that it didn’t require anything more than a look and a mental nod. 

So, they incorporated literal “touch”stones for me in our dream world. Sometimes it was Jim giving me a hug as we started the night. Sometimes it was Spock resting a hand on my shoulder as he talked about our strategy for keeping Jim awake during our training sessions. Sometimes it was sitting next to each other with our legs touching. And I adored them both for it.

After figuring out sleep and getting our minds on more stable ground, we finally felt ready to start putting our plan into action. It started with altering our habits little by little to get ourselves into a better position to resist the gas. We wanted to already be “asleep” when the gas was released so we didn’t have to fake passing out or risk being caught off guard. So, regardless of whether we were actually tired or not, we all started laying down roughly every twelve hours. It was a total revamp of our natural sleep patterns, but we had to accommodate our host’s schedule on this one. We would stagger the times we settled in, but we were all in position when the gas was released. 

Additionally, I began slinging my arm over my face when I would fall asleep. It was not the most comfortable thing in the world, but we wanted to get to the point where I might have my arm under my blanket and, when I went to drape my arm over my face, my blanket could be pulled along with it and cover my nose and mouth. Any barrier between us and the gas would help.

To that end, Kirk started to leave his towel on his cot after showers. It was a casual sort of messiness that didn’t seem out of character for him. But when the time came, the towel would be in easy reach to bury his face in as he rolled over in his “sleep.”

“Lieutenant,” Spock said in my mind one day while his hand was on my face for the continued show of re-balancing. “It is time for you and the Captain to practice staying awake without me.”

“What?” I asked, confused. “Why? Going somewhere, Commander?”

“In order to increase our chances of success, we must have multiple approaches in our attempt to resist the gas,” he explained.

“Yeah, so?” I retorted. 

“So, we have the blanket and towel thing and Spock has his mind,” Jim provided.

“The next phase of this plan is to deepen my meditative state to give me increased control over my biological function,” Spock chimed back in. “The two of you will be on your own as I devote my mental resources to concentration and focus.”

Spock took his hand away from my face and the small window between us closed, but we continued the conversation as I got settled on my cot.

“All that effort learning to keep each other awake and you were going to bail on us the whole time?” I asked, a little annoyed.

“That effort was not wasted, Lieutenant,” Spock pointed out in his infuriatingly level voice. “We laid the groundwork for how to accomplish the goal of continued consciousness. We will still be acting as one. I will lend my strength to you both, as you will do for me. However, the bulk of my focus will be on my own task.”

“C’mon Anna,” Kirk encouraged as I closed my eyes and threw my arm over my face. “We’ll survive without Spock’s general air of annoyance at human weakness.”

“I do not have a general air --” Spock began.

“You should probably start your meditation, Spock,” Jim interrupted. “You know, if we want practice time before the gas is released.” I couldn’t help but smile as the mental equivalent of a “harumph” emanated from Spock and Jim chuckled. 

Soon, the low drone of the Vulcan language (which I did not understand) filled our minds. It quickly became apparent that if Jim and I sent sentences to one another over the link, it was distracting to Spock. So, we tried to...well...daydream. If we didn’t intentionally bring Spock with us, it was easy for him to ignore us and stay in his own cocoon.

First Jim brought us to the Enterprise. He showed me the Bridge from the Captain’s chair. After I looked around from his perspective for a while, he mentally clicked through each station and each person that occupied that station during each shift. When he got to Barnes, I could feel his anxiety and regret for starting down this path that had, undoubtedly, felt like a safe subject matter when he started. I used our non-verbal signs for “it’s okay, don’t worry.”

Then I took over and switched us to the Academy. I started outside the main lecture hall and basically took the Captain on a tour. Occasionally, he would interrupt me and show me a little nook or cranny that I didn’t know about. If I had thought about it, I would have realized that it was an impressive dance of interweaving our thoughts without verbal cues. But, I was distracted by my competitive nature and it quickly became my goal to find something that I knew about campus that he didn’t. I tried the little path between Maintenance Building B and the Linguistics Lab. But he flashed a picture of himself making out with an Orion cadet there. 

I showed him an employees-only back room in the bar that sat on the north edge of campus, but he showed me a dark memory of himself curled around a particularly attractive Andorian. I tried a hidden enclave of the memorial park, a deserted section of the sub-basement of the Thermodynamics department, and a storage closet in the women’s barracks that led to another, deeper, closet. I was treated to one picture after another of various Kirk conquests in each place.

Annoyed, I presented the library and showed him the study room that I often occupied for hours and hours. I had poured over every form of record about piloting every form of flight known to the Federation. Kirk politely acknowledged the room and then I had an idea. I put forth the old stacks on the fifteenth floor of the library. The paper manuscripts were so precious and so familiar to me, I could smell them. Kirk’s interest peaked. I ran my hand along the spines and felt the tingle in my fingertips. Kirk imitated me and I saw his eyes sparkle. 

When I got to the end of the row, I turned around and gestured for Kirk to stand next to me against the wall. He obeyed. I grabbed a large stack of the books from the lowest shelf and set them on the ground. I did this again and again until I had built a little wall of books. I took Kirk by the hand and we slid down the wall until we were both sitting on the floor.

Together we sat in silence and looked around at the books all around us. My perfect place. It was peaceful. Jim sighed beside me. I panicked momentarily when I realized it might be too serene for our stay-awake goal. And then I looked up.

“No need for anxiety, Lieutenant,” Spock said, towering over us. “You both fell asleep some time ago.”

“We did?” I asked, bewildered. “Damn. So much for daydreaming.”

“Indeed,” Spock agreed. Spock took a moment to absorb our little book fort. “What are you doing?”

“Come find out!” I said enthusiastically as I shoved some of the books to make room for Spock. “Grab some books to make it bigger,” I instructed. Spock reached for the nearest books, but I stopped him. “No, keep the ones that are eye level or higher.” Spock looked at me curiously, but did as instructed. “This. This is me.”

Once the fort had been made larger to accommodate all three of us, we sat side-by-side in a rather smushed together sort of way. We could have made the space a little bigger with just some collective directed thoughts, since the whole thing was in our minds anyway. But we didn’t. We sat and gazed around us and above us. Books encircled us and provided a buffer between us and everything else. The silence had its own color. It was cozy and nostalgic and perfect. 

I wasn’t thinking of all of the strange and emotionally charged things that had been happening. I wasn’t worried about my thoughts mingling with Jim’s or Spock’s. Anxiety and worry slipped away, absorbed by the warm pages of the books on all sides and the easy way the three of us sat in understanding. I could feel their calm. I could feel their quiet resolve. I could feel their bond and realized that I was as much a part of it as they were. 

And then I noticed that our breathing was synchronized. And when I shifted my weight a little, the two men did the same thing at the same time. And I could tell we all became aware of this at the same time. We were all a little concerned that the observation of the phenomenon would destroy it, but we remained calm. We took a deep breath. We lowered our chins to our chests. 

We opened our eyes.

Through the haze of the gas, we each saw one life form standing in our cell with us.


End file.
